Cassius was recently diagnosed with possible FIP but today we learned it is NOT FIP but rather a rare Hereditary Coagulation Disorder/Hemophilia. Unlike FIP, THIS is not a death sentence and together we can save him! Cassius is the 4th of six ...

Cassius was recently diagnosed with possible FIP but today we learned
it is NOT FIP but rather a rare Hereditary Coagulation
Disorder/Hemophilia. Unlike FIP, THIS is not a death sentence and
together we can save him!

Cassius is the 4th of six kittens born to Evaney, a beautiful all
black cat who was saved from Putnam County Animal Services Death Row
while very pregnant. Cassius was born on April 17th 2014 and I have
loved him from the start. The way he would gaze up at me and always
want to sit in my lap and fall asleep. I love ALL my Minions as I call
my rescues, but there has always been something different about
Cassius, and I always knew I was keeping him.

Recently we had an outbreak of “cat flu” (FCV or FHV) make its way
through our kitty household and I’m happy to report all the kittens
are recovered or are very nearly there. But it seemed to be lingering
in Cassius, a perpetual clear runny nose and some lethargy so I was
concerned and called our mobile Vet who came Oct 16th. She examined
him and nothing too worrying presented itself so more antibiotics and
some nasal decongestant were prescribed.

A few days later Cassius seemed to freak out and went running through
the house like he was being chased. I thought this sudden burst of
energy strange but the other kittens thinking it was a game were
chasing him! But then it happened a few more times. He would wake from
sleep and tear through the house like a he was having a panic attack
or Night Terrors. I intended on calling the Vet about weird behavior
(and now believe he was having Complex Partial Seizures) On the 24th I
noticed he was leaning to the left, seemed weak in his hind legs. I
called another Vet and got him seen that day. Unfortunately, while
they ran their tests on him he became very stressed and after we left
he had an unmistakable terrifying grand mal seizure!!! I rushed him
back into the office where he had yet another that the vet was able to
witness. They gave him valium and some to take with us. I opted to
take Cassius home rather than go to the Emergency Clinic. I thought
that might be another seizure inducing event for him. I weighed the
benefits and negatives and didn’t think they could do much more for
him than what I could at home so I didn’t want to risk it. And in
truth, I was petrified that he might die there, cold and alone and I
couldn’t bear that! If it were his time then he would pass in comfort
at home surrounded by love…

I slept on the couch with him that night (and every night since.) I
received a call the next day from another Vet at the same office
informing me that he believed Cassius had FIP. And my heart
immediately sank. FIP has no cure and is fatal. I was stunned. Numb.
That entire day I could not function properly or stop crying. All I
could do was take care of Cassius and love on him. And he needed a lot
of care. You see, after that last seizure Cassius could no longer
walk. He was almost completely incapacitated. He would not eat except
a few Whiskas here and there and with great difficulty. He could only
drink if I brought him water and held his head and body steady for
him… My 6 month old beautiful boy was going to die and there was
nothing I could do about it!

But then something happened. As I was bathing him the next morning
which he handled good naturedly, I looked into his beautiful blue eyes
and saw LIFE, and LOVE, and HOPE. And I didn’t see THE LOOK. There is
a LOOK that animals get in their eyes when they are “done” I can’t
explain it but I know it when I see it. And Cassius didn’t and doesn’t
have it! True, he does not feel good, but he isn’t ready to go
anywhere yet! And then my senses kicked in and the more I read and
researched, the more that feeling in my “gut” insisted it wasn’t FIP.
I KNOW intellectually that it very well could have been, but that’s
not what my intuition and heart were telling me. There was too much
going on. Too much not understood. Was a seizure disorder causing the
symptoms that look like FIP or was it FIP causing these seziures? Too
many unanswered questions and unexplained things. I have never been
one to accept a diagnosis because it’s convenient or seems likely. I
want TO KNOW. And my “gut” refused to believe this FIP possible diagnosis…

I have been sustaining him these last few weeks with intensive care
and maintenance until I could decide a course of action and raise the
funds, but yesterday Cassius’s breathing took a turn for the worse and
I was terribly afraid I would lose him to whatever it was that was
making him so ill before he ever had a definite diagnosis! Even though
he was scheduled for an untrasound tomorrow, I took him to another Vet
today to find answers before it was too late. I was either going to
save him…or prevent him from suffering TODAY.

And I thank heavens I did! They re-did the blood work and it didn’t
look good. His liver levels were up and his anemia was worse,
indications correlating with FIP. They did the ultrasound I wanted and
found his liver affected, his bladder was “huge”, and there was some
fluid in the abdomen, albeit not much. My heart sank once more. But in
a final Hail Mary test, the doc gathered that fluid to test for
proteins and found BLOOD!

She came into the room and announced “It’s NOT FIP” and just before I
busted out into a happy dance, she cautioned me it’s still not good.
And I know it isn’t----BUT it isn’t a death sentence as FIP is!
Cassius has a rather rare-ish Hereditary Coagulation Disorder
(Hemophilia and Probably the Hemophilia B type.) He needs a blood
transfusion as soon as possible to live. It costs over $500 to get
this done and I just don’t have it.

Pretty much all my money goes to my own cats and my Death Row Rescues
or their offspring, of which Cassius is one. But I have maxed out my
credit cards and my Care Credit. I used the last of that today on
Cassius (which I was going to use to fix me and my health/dental
issues which need addressing soon----but he took precedence because he
is CRITICAL)

The road ahead is going to be long and dangerous for Cassius even
with the transfusion, but today at least THERE IS A ROAD AHEAD
possible! I believe with all of my being that we can save Cassius,
that he can overcome this, recover and live a happy life for many
years to come. Please help me save him! I don’t think that special
bond that has always existed between us is an accident. I love him
beyond measure and I would never give up on him unless he “tells” me
so. And his eyes say nothing of the kind!

Cassius NEEDS the transfusion ASAP and that is over $500 we
desperately need first and foremost. I am posting all the receipts for
everything that has been done for him because we are so underfunded
for other things that now I will not have the funds to do. If you
could help recoup any amount for his expenses I would be most grateful
and a lot less stressed. It all goes back to my Death Row Rescues or
Back to Care Credit which can take care of all of us. Please share and
donate if you can.

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